San Giorgio Maggiore (church), Venice

San Giorgio Maggiore is a 16th-century Benedictine church on the island of the same name in Venice. Designed by Andrea Palladio, it was built between 1566 and 1610. The church is a basilica in the classical Renaissance style, with brilliant white marble that gleams above the blue water of the lagoon opposite the Piazzetta di San Marco.

Don't miss

• The brilliant white marble facade, which represents Palladio's solution to adapting a classical temple facade to a Christian church with a high nave and low side aisles.
• Two large paintings by Tintoretto in the presbytery: The Last Supper and The Jews in the desert.
• The painting of the Entombment of Christ by Jacopo Tintoretto in the Cappella dei Morti (Chapel of the Dead).
• The altarpiece Virgin and Child with Saints by Sebastiano Ricci in the Bollani family chapel.
• The altarpiece by Jacopo and Domenico Tintoretto showing the Risen Christ and St Andrew in the Morosini family altar.
• The campanile (bell tower), which can be ascended by easy ramps or a lift for a fine view across Venice.

Tickets & tours

Ways to visit San Giorgio Maggiore (church), Venice

Cheapest way inSt. Mark's Basilica: Golden Cathedral Priority Visit (Refundable)4.5★ · 480 travelers1-2 hoursFree cancellationFrom$14 per personSee dates →Best full dayVenice In a Day St Mark's Doges Palace Gondola Ride and City Tour4.8★ · 4,539 travelers4-6 hoursFrom$129 per personSee dates →Private & flexibleVenice or Fusina cruise to Venice AIRPORT VCE4.7★ · 19 travelers~1 hourFree cancellationFrom$134 per personSee dates →

Getting there

Know before you go

• The church is on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, opposite the Piazzetta di San Marco.
• The interior is very bright, with massive engaged columns and pilasters on undecorated, white-surfaced walls.
• The campanile has a lift and easy ramps to the top for a view across Venice.

A bit of history

The first church on the island was built around 790. In 982, the island was given to the Benedictine order by Doge Tribuno Memmo, and they founded a monastery there. An earthquake destroyed all buildings on the island in 1223. The church and monastery were rebuilt after the earthquake. Palladio arrived in Venice in 1560 and was asked to prepare a model for a new church in 1565. The foundation stone was laid in 1566. The body of the church was complete by 1575, but the choir and facade were finished later, with the facade completed in 1610. The campanile, first built in 1467, fell in 1774 and was rebuilt in neoclassical style by 1791.